dungeonsfandomcom-20200223-history
Illithid
Illithid Horrible aberrations from the Underdark, manifesting fear in their wake. The ultimate megalomaniacs, mind flayers use their ability to enslave minds to play puppeteer to countless thralls while they feast on the brains of less useful creatures. Their goal is nothing short of world domination. Play an Illithid if you want... * To play a creature that likes to manipulate from the shadows * To devour the brains of lesser creatures as sustenance * To be a member of a race that favors the Psion, Warlock and Wizard Physical Qualities Mind flayers, or illithids as they call themselves, are the embodiment of mortals' worst fears. They dwell in darkness and order monsters on foul errands. They slaughter or enslave multitudes of peaceful creatures and exert total dominance over prisoners. Mind flayers have spent centuries on selective breeding and magical manipulation experiments in an attempt to create the perfect slave race. Perhaps the most horrifying and repulsive attribute of the illithids is their physical form, a grisly mockery of the humanoid victims from which they were birthed. Mind flayers use other creatures to reproduce. They implant a juvenile illithid inside a victim's skull, where the tadpole shaped offspring eats the creature's brain. The progeny's Far Realm essence irrevocably alters the creature's form, turning it into an adult illithid with features that hint at its former occupant. Some mind flayer cabals search out specific vessels for their young, believing that a powerful host body makes for a strong illithid. Playing an Illithid With far-reaching plans and a vast pool of thralls, a mind flayer dips its tentacles into regional affairs without getting involved in them. The fiend prefers to remain unnoticed, notching milestone after milestone until its overarching goal is realized. A mind flayer isn't solitary in the sense that it lives alone. Rather, it abides only the company of mindless thralls and illithids that have goals identical to its own. illithids believe all creatures are their inferiors. To an illithid, other creatures exist for one of three purposes: host vessel, food, or slave. When a mind flayer aligns with another creature, it has already plotted how and when it will betray its new ally. At its basic level, a mind flayer needs brains for sustenance, and it prefers to use thralls to collect would-be victims. When first building its power base, a mind flayer might live hand to mouth lor a while. As an illithid's legions reach a healthy size, it launches into the heart of its plans. It might collect arcane writings and items of power to increase its knowledge: it could meddle in the politics of the surface world; it might even be intent on creating portals to summon more of its kin from the Far Realm. The ultimate crown every mind flayer covets is rulership over the planes, which would be reshaped in the Far Realm's image. Given a chance, illithids would extinguish the sun, blister the world, warp flesh into aberrant forms, and rewrite every natural race's history with mad gibbering Illithid Characteristics: Conniving, dangerous, manipulative, narcissistic, scheming, treacherous, untrustworthy Names: Illithids choose names to give others as they see fit. Possibly the name of their first victim or some great magical artifact. Illithid Adventurers Annulus is an illithid psion who despises all of his kind and his own psionic power. His name is based on the artifact that has the ability to completely eradicate a psionic being. His mind was brutally devastated by another psion who challenged his power, and while he survived the encounter he was left broken. All he remembers is the pain and torment to his mind and the cause, so no matter what he will destroy that cause and then destroy himself. All who use psionic powers must beware for a destroyer has come and though he is a broken remnant of his former self his abilities are still truly terrifying. Bluecloak is an illithid wizard who derives his name from a human wizard that experimented on him. Over the course of time the original Shuandel Bluecloak thought that he had successfully managed to make the illithid subservient. Sadly for him, While the illithid could no longer find the desire to kill him and should have been defenseless against the old wizard's commands, he still had his appetite. So upon releasing the illithid from its shackles, the moment of peace was instantly shattered when the man had his brains sucked from his head. Now assuming the name Bluecloak from his former master the creature sets out to find its way in life. It has no desire to harm others or rule them, nor does it wish to fix whatever was done to it. Bluecloak just wants to be of service and eat, though who it eats depends on how well those around him keep him fed. ---- Category:4e Category:User Category:Race Category:Aberrant Origin Category:Humanoid Type